Star Crossed Lovers
by authentic-redhead
Summary: The story of how two who hated one another grew to love each other.
1. Hope

"_You?_" There was so much discontent and disgust issuing from Lily Evans' mouth that it was a wonder James didn't recoil.

"Yes," James sighed in a tired sort of way. They were on the Hogwarts Express and quickly speeding toward the school itself when Lily found out who had been made Head Boy.

"You had better be joking!" She snarled, her bright emerald eyes flashing dangerously.

"I wish I were," James said, sitting down.

The Head Boy and Girl of the year not only get their own private train compartment but also have their own dormitory, at the very top of Gryffindor tower, and separate from the rest of their year.

Lily let out a soft cry of despair, her eyes wide in shock, and she too sank down into a seat across from James, using her hand to cover her eyes. Then, as inspiration struck, she gasped, making James jump.

"I've thought of it!" she exclaimed excitedly.

"What?" he asked warily.

"Once you break a bad enough rule, they'll _have_ to renege on your Head Boyship," Lily said, sounding positively delighted.

"Evans, I'm not going to sink away from responsibility, besides what would my parents think? Looks like you're stuck with me."

Lily shook her head; she wasn't giving up that easy.

"Don't worry, I know you can't stay out of trouble for long." She said, composing herself and looking out the window.

"I hate to disappoint you Evans, but, c'mon. Who in our year would tell on me?" his cocky and arrogant tone of voice made Lily want nothing more than to smack him.

"I would." She stated.

He gasped, clearly shocked. "You wouldn't."

"I would, Potter. I take my badge seriously and if you don't take yours so then you can relinquish it to a much more worthy candidate."

"Evans," James began, starting to feel seriously annoyed now, "they made me Head Boy, I'm sorry, but there's nothing you can do."

"Not true James, not true," she said, smiling at him in an extremely irritating fashion.

He let out an exasperated sound and sank back onto the seat. Just then, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Lily said, kindly, readjusting herself.

"I-I'm sorry, but we're supposed to come to you for our briefing, I believe," said a nervous-looking girl with curly brown hair that fell down her shoulders, peaking her head around the corner of the door.

"Yes, of course, come on in," Lily said with a smile, motioning to the empty seats around the compartment.

The girl was followed by three other girls and two other boys.

"Where are the other two prefects?" James asked, counting quickly.

The group of students cast wary eyes around all looking at one another but none of them saying anything. It was obvious. They all knew, but none were telling.

"Well, who are we missing?" James asked, sitting up straighter in his seat.

"The guy from Gryffindor and the guy from Slytherin," a boy with bleach blond hair offered he shrank back when he realized his friends were all looking daggers at him.

Lily and James caught eye contact and both were thinking the same thing. They both stood up suddenly and dashed to the door and out into the hallway, James in the lead.

"Stay here," Lily said to the prefects as she and James hurried down the corridor.

"Do you know who they are?" Lily asked James, curiously.

"Yeah, I believe its Bradford and Montgomery," James said, glancing quickly in every compartment he passed and not seeing them anywhere.

"How do you know that?" Lily asked, incredulously.

"It was on the sheet of information Hogwarts sent out with your badge…didn't you read it?"

Lily flushed. She had read it, but she didn't recall any such paper. "Of course I read it!" she snapped, "But that doesn't mean I memorized-"

Suddenly, they could hear scuffling and shouts and a compartment not fifty feet in front of them burst open and four kids came spilling out. Shouts could still be heard coming from the compartment so James pushed passed the students, his wand drawn.

When he could at last get inside the compartment he saw, just as he suspected, two boys locked in a fight. Rolling around on the floor, James found it hard to get good enough aim and so he stowed his wand back into his jeans and started to break up the fight.

"Oi!" James yelled, sticking a foot in between the two wrestling boys. "Hey! Knock it off, you two!" He bent over and pulled Samuel Montgomery off of a crumpled and bleeding Aaron Bradford. James pulled Samuel to his feet and looked him over.

"Are you okay?" James asked, grabbing him by his shoulders. Samuel nodded, wiping his upper lip free of blood with his sleeve. James released him and reluctantly hoisted up Aaron. Aaron was in much worse shape. He would barely get up.

"Get up!" James shouted, attempting to hold up the scrawny boy. James eventually plopped him on the seat where he sat crumpled and whimpering.

Behind him he could hear Lily mending Samuel's lip by magic and telling the gaggle of students watching eagerly, to clear off.

"What hurts?" James asked in an almost annoyed tone of voice.

This was a pretty dumb question considering it looked like Aaron's nose had been broken. Blood was streaming down it and splattering onto his robes. His teeth also looked like they were bleeding.

Clenching his teeth James unwillingly said, "Open your mouth." Aaron did and James could see a lot of blood, but no broken teeth. "Doesn't look like any permanent damage." James said, straightening up. He pulled out his wand, told Aaron to sit still and pointed it at his face. "_Ipiski!_" Aaron's nose mended with a sickening crunch.

"You two are prefects!" he said, scolding the boys. "You need to get your act together. Come with me, you're both supposed to be at a meeting right now."

As James led the way out into the corridor he saw Lily's shocked and terrified face. He was slightly surprised. It was only a fight.

Once back in the prefect's quarters Lily let them have it.

"I don't know WHAT on earth you thought you were doing! Why in the world would you result to fist-fighting?"

"Well-," began Samuel, but James cut him off.

"No, Montgomery. We don't want to hear it. Whatever it was, it had better have been worked out and I want no more fighting between you two or there _will_ be consequences."

Lily stared, wide-eyed at James as he turned to the rest of the prefects.

As James and Lily briefed them on their jobs and responsibilities Lily couldn't help but notice the change that had come about James. He hadn't hit on her once, or asked her out, or stared at any of her body parts. At least, she hadn't caught him doing so. Yet. He seemed almost mature, responsible, a leader. He was treating the 5th Years kindly. She was preparing herself for the letdown.

Once they sent the kids on their way they had the compartment to themselves again. James stretched out, lying down across the seats, using his school robes as a pillow. When Lily noticed this, she smiled at him. Then realized it and stopped immediately. She did however, mimic him, curling up facing him, lying on her head on her school robes she closed her eyes momentarily.

"Hey, Evans?" James asked rolling over to lie on his back and look up at the ceiling.

"Mm?"

"Are you okay? Cause you looked a little shaken after that fight." He felt the color rise slightly in his cheeks; he didn't want her to think he was hitting on her or anything.

Lily opened her eyes and stared at him. He had turned his head to look at her. He had big, brown, mahogany, eyes. She had never really realized how beautifully round they were.

"Yeah, I just – well … I thought … ," She burst out laughing. He chuckled, too.

"Wow. Lily Evans at a loss for words!"

"Shut up!" she said, grinning over at him. "Yes, I am fine, thank you. I really admire the way you handled that situation, that's all. You just stepped in and took charge, and even stopped to make sure Bradford, a Slytherin, was okay. That was really nice of you." She felt her face burn and couldn't look him in the eye as she paid him such a compliment.

"I couldn't just leave him!" James said, slightly defensive.

"Yes, you could have! But the fact that you didn't shows me, well, shows me that you just might live up to your Head Boy badge pinned on your chest." She said the last bit very quickly, blushing even further crimson.

At first, James felt completely shocked, as though he had been stunned. Then, he grinned up at the ceiling. "Thanks, Lily."

He had never called her Lily before. It made her heart skip a beat. It sent him for a loop, too. _Where did that come from?_ He thought. James decided it was better to act as though he didn't notice he had called her anything other than he usually does.

"So, did you – er – have a good summer?" he asked, awkwardly, after fifteen minutes of silence.

"Yes, it was quite good, thanks, and you?" she replied without opening her eyes.

"It was okay," he shrugged, avoiding the question.

She suddenly opened her eyes to look at him and said very seriously, "I heard about your Grandparents, and I'm so sorry."

He could tell that her empathy was true and her voice was sincere, but he did _not_ want to talk about it. "Yeah, well, no biggie. They had to go at some point, right?" He was the one avoiding her eyes now.

"I suppose, but that doesn't mean -," at that moment the compartment door burst open, making both of them jump.

"Prongs!" Sirius said loudly and happily. He was grinning ear to ear.

"Padfoot!" James exclaimed back, equally as excited. "What's up?"

"Not much, just thought I'd check in, you know, just to make sure you're both _behaving _yourselves." He grinned wickedly at the two of them. "Just the two of you, shut up in here for too long … who knows what could happen?"

Lily felt her blood boil and just as she opened her mouth to retort, James said, "Sirius!" in a dangerous way that made her stop.

"Prongs?" Sirius replied, surprised.

"Just… just take it easy, okay?" James said, looking at him and then glancing at Lily.

Suddenly, Sirius got a very ugly look on his face. "Oh, I see how it's going to be. Never mind then! I'll just - ," and he made to leave. James lunged to grab him, but Lily beat him.

"Black, it's not like that!" she exclaimed, grabbing his arm. "It's just that Potter and I were getting along for the first time and had he _not_ stuck up for me, well, it could be a very long year." She glanced at James to check for approval, but he was staring at her hand on Sirius' arm.

"Eh," Sirius said, still trying to act angry, instead of hurt. He looked down at her hand still on his arm and then to James and said, "I'll see you at Hogwarts, shall I?"

"Definitely," said James, looking into his eyes and attempting to smile, but still wholly jealous of the hand that had only just relinquished the pressure upon the arm of his best mate.

Sirius nodded at Lily, who smiled back, and departed, shutting the door behind him.

"I didn't just make it worse, did I?" asked Lily quickly, gazing imploringly up into James' mahogany eyes with her anxious, bright green ones.

"No," he said, finally meeting her gaze and smiling down at her. "You helped, you definitely helped."

"Okay," she sighed, relaxing.

It was only then as they were smiling at one another that they realized how close they were to one another. They both took several hasty steps back to sit on their respective benches again.

James' senses were on end, he could smell every bit of her, every particle of her being. She smelled of fresh flowers and lavender.

She lay down and closed her eyes quickly, trying not to reveal how she felt at being so close to him. She could feel his breath on her face, and longed to feel his muscular arms.

He, meanwhile, sat and stared unseeingly ahead, still trying to shake off the feeling she had just given him. Finally recognizing it, he realized it wasn't just arousal, it was hope.


	2. Late Night Findings

A/N: This isn't in the right order. I apologize. I've been working on different parts of this story and I'm anxious to get stuff posted, so this is a MUCH later chapter where James and Lily are becoming buds and this situation happens. Reviews are better than sex.

When James entered the Common Room, it was to find Lily fast asleep sitting in a chair, bent over using a large textbook as a pillow. Her river of scarlet hair flowed over everything. Crimson rose pedals adorning a mahogany table.

He sighed deeply, running a hand through his hair distractedly. He couldn't leave her here like this. But, he was _not_ going to wake her up. Girls were never nice when they woke up. There was only one thing for it. He knew he couldn't bring her up to her own dormitory as the girls' staircase was jinxed. This left only one option.

He carefully pulled her body to a sitting position and gently managed to scoop her into his arms. His heart began to beat faster. Her head had lolled onto his shoulder sending her wave of hair cascading down his arms, tickling them.

She wasn't heavy at all and James doubted very much if he would have noticed if she were. She could definitely hold a mean stance, but at the moment her frame was petite and fragile. James slowly made his way up the boys' staircase. His heart began to thump painfully against his chest. _What if she woke up right now?_

From then on he moved much more quickly. Quietly, he made his way to the top. Once in his dormitory (he left the door _wide_ open) he crossed to the bed and gently lay her down across it. Her peaceful head rested against his pillow. The moonlight across her face made her look even more beautiful than she normally did.

James had trouble untucking the sheets and pulling the blankets around her. He paused for a moment debating whether or not he dare put her in some of his pajamas. He decided in an instant that he didn't dare. It'd be a fine site if she woke up to him doing _that_. Leaving her in her clothes he watched her for a moment and listened to her rhythmic breathing.

Sighing again, he crossed quietly to his dresser and pulled out his pajama bottoms and quickly changed into them and took off his shirt. Deciding that he'd shower in the morning he grabbed the blanket from Padfoot's bed and crept back towards her.

He froze next to her bed as she rolled over and pulled the blankets tighter around herself; when she lay still again he relaxed. Then he took a trembling hand and gently reached out in the darkness to stroke her hair before carefully leaning in and placing a soft, sweet kiss upon her forehead, whispering, "Sleep tight."

Once at the door, he paused, looking back at her. Her hair was spread far out behind her across his pillow and she lay on her back with one hand left carelessly trailing across her stomach while the other rested above her head. Moonlight from the open curtain fell across her face and hair, making it sparkle.

Then he traipsed back downstairs to the Common Room and plopped down on one of the long couches in front of the fire. He grabbed a cushion and used it as a pillow. He lie awake for a long time, watching the embers of the fire grow dimmer and dimmer, thinking of the person now sleeping in his bed.

He awoke next morning to the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen, though it took him a minute to get it into focus.

Lily was about two inches from his face, and rubbing his arm saying, "Wake up sleepy head!" she smiled and scrunched her nose at him in a playful way.

"Good morning, gorgeous," he croaked. Pushing his head back into the pillows, he squinted, trying to bring her into sharper focus.

She grinned down at him. She was sitting on the very edge of the couch upon which he had made his bed.

He rubbed his head, trying to shake the sleeping feeling away. Then he noticed something. "You changed?" he asked, desisting momentarily from rubbing his head to look at her.

"Oh," she said, suddenly blushing, and James, looking down, noticed that she was wearing a pair of his shorts. Not only that but she was in a cami tank top which was quite form fitting and not at all appropriate at these kinds of close quarters. "Yeah, I woke up last night and I was really hot so I took off my shirt," James flinched. "I was wearing this underneath!" She said, hitting him. "And I didn't realize I wasn't in my own dorm because I was really tired and …"

"You grabbed a pair of _my_ shorts?" He finished for her, grinning.

"Obviously," she said coolly. "But, I can go change-" She got up and crossed to the back of the couch, but he sat up quickly and grabbed her arm.

"I think it's cute." He said simply.

She blushed a little as she smiled down at him, admiring how much he had changed. From the angle James was receiving her hair cascaded down over one side of her neck, creating a curtain and with the sun flooding the Common Room with early morning light, she looked quite angelic.

When he didn't let go of her hand she sat down on the couch cushion where his head had been resting moments before, cross-legged and facing the fireplace. He spun around to look at her. He finally let go of her hand and she wrapped both around her knees which she brought up to her chest.

"James," she said, turning her head to look at him and he was surprised to see that her emerald eyes were glistened, as though with tears but there was no quaver in her voice as she said, "Thanks."

"No problem." He shrugged. Cocking his head to one side, he blinked his hair out of his eyes as it fell into it.

"No, _really_," and in her eagerness to make him understand, she reached out a hand and touched his leg. Her touch sent lightning bolts through his body. "James, I mean it. You could've done so many things last night. I guess I just mean, thanks for respecting me. _And_ donating your bed. It was… sweet." She blushed furiously as she said it and looked away. Then, sneaking a peek, they made eye contact again.

They stared at each other for a moment. Both began to move closer when Lily realized what was happening she stopped half-way and stood up. Walking past him she bent and kissed him on the cheek and made to move on. But his hand had grabbed her arm.

Looking down at him she saw the longing in his face, those round, amber eyes so full of love. Coming back to reality, he looked down again, gently kissed her hand, and muttered, "You're welcome." He dropped her hand, trying not to show his true emotions. What he felt like doing was crying or shouting, he wasn't sure which.

But, suddenly a warm palm found the bottom of his jaw and pulled it up to face her. Sitting down on his lap, so that their faces were at eyelevel she took his face in her other hand, too while both of his found her tiny waist, holding her securely. He turned his head to kiss her other palm and then looked at her again. She smiled, her eyes brimming with tears of a feeling that made her heart feel lighter than air, yet completely full.

Without warning she pulled his head to hers and pressed her lips hard against his own. When they broke apart a moment later he just sat there, looking stunned. He hadn't even had time to react, and now it was over. His eyes were still widened in shock and she laughed a little as she wiped her eyes.

He began to laugh, too as he pulled her to him saying, "Lily, what's the matter?" He wrapped his strong, protective, bare, arms around her also bare arms, hugging her to him. Feeling slightly uncomfortable she slid her arms out from under herself and wrapped them around his back. Still uncomfortable, she scooted down, and the pair twisted and moved about until they were comfortable which was finally achieved with both lying flat, Lily on top of James.

"You okay?" He asked, looking down at her. She nodded. Her head was on his chest and her hands were wrapped around his back, underneath him. One of his large hands was laying on her back the other wrapped around the back of his neck. She breathed deeply and closed her eyes.

Looking down at her he felt as though he was clearly the luckiest man alive. Her beautiful crimson locks were everywhere. They were spread across _him_. His heart rate quickened and so did his breath.

She lifted her head and opened one eye at him. She smiled. "I can feel your heartbeat."

He smiled down at her again, now feeling as though his heart were in his throat. He jumped about a mile when she snaked one of her ice-like feet around his calf.

"Sorry," she whispered, her eyes twinkling, smiling a mischievous smile. "Are my feet cold?" She moved her head closer to his.

With her only an inch from his mouth he managed to reply, "Freezing," before she was upon him.


End file.
